WTFUDLS 74

Chapter 74

“Mm… I knew it.”

Hansol nodded as she spoke.

Jiu looked at her in surprise.

“You knew?”

“It’s not that I knew… I just kind of thought it could be possible.”

“What? Really? Was it that obvious?”

“Well… I’m always hanging out with you guys. The others probably don’t know.”

“Really? If so, that’s a relief…”

Jiu looked worried.

Hansol thought, So this really is the end.
This was exactly why she hadn’t wanted to meet Jiu today—she had a feeling Jiu would bring this up.

— Hey… I think I… like Noeul…

She had wondered how she would react if she actually heard those words. She didn’t think she could pretend to be shocked as if she had never imagined it. So she had decided she would act as though she had kind of suspected it.

Unfortunately, Hansol’s prediction was correct.

Now it was openly acknowledged between them that Hansol knew Jiu liked Noeul.

Until now, Hansol had been able to pretend she didn’t know. She could still casually do things like hang out with Noeul one-on-one, or text late at night.

But now even that was impossible. She was basically forced to help Jiu get together with Noeul.

…Was this Jiu’s plan? Because Hansol seemed like she might get in the way between her and Noeul, so she was trying to stop it?

…No, Jiu wouldn’t think that far. She just had no one else to talk to, felt frustrated, and probably wanted Hansol’s help.

Jiu spoke again.

“Actually, back when Noeul told off your high school friends for you, I thought maybe you two had something going on. Since he even went to your house and stuff.”

“Ah… I see… so that’s why you asked me back then.”

“Yeah. But when you said you and Noeul were nothing, I was kind of relieved.”

Jiu smiled shyly.

Hansol also smiled.

“Ah, come on, no way. Does that even make sense? If Noeul and I had something, we would’ve dated ages ago. We were always together.”

Hansol put on the performance of her life.

She absolutely couldn’t let Jiu know that she saw Noeul as more than a friend.

Becoming rivals with Jiu? She hated the idea. It felt like some melodramatic tragedy. And Hansol already knew she would lose. She had no desire to step into a competition where she’d only end up humiliated and pitied.

So she spoke as sincerely as possible, so it wouldn’t even cross Jiu’s mind that she was lying.

Jiu said,

“Re…ally?”

“Of course. If anything, when you like someone, you can’t hang around them that comfortably.”

“True. After I started liking Noeul, I’ve been kind of tense and awkward around him.”

“…Yeah. Exactly.”

Hansol felt her situation growing more and more pathetic.

And how much more pathetic would she become?

Jiu cupped both cheeks in her hands.

“Ahh but what do I do now? I like him, but I don’t know what to do next. I don’t think Noeul sees me as a woman… If I confess without thinking, I feel like he’ll reject me… So maybe I should build some affection first, but we’ve been friends for so long that I don’t even know how to do that. When I try to act that way, it just feels cringe. If we were strangers it’d be easier…”

Her cheeks grew redder and redder.

A smile tugged at her lips.

She was clearly a girl in love.

Her cheeks were squished from her hands, her lips poked out like a little duck.
Even from another woman’s perspective, she looked incredibly cute.

What was she even worrying about? With that face, if she just went up and said “I like you,” it’d be game over. Maybe she knew that, and was just enjoying this moment—this fluttery, painful anticipation of wondering whether her feelings would be accepted.

Hansol let out an awkward laugh.

“Yeah… it’s harder because you’re already friends. Affection… huh.”

“Right? Ugh… I should’ve dated someone before.”

But Hansol already knew what Jiu should do.

Jiu just needed to tell Noeul she liked him. Ask him out. Noeul wouldn’t accept right away—he might even reject her at first. He’d think he wasn’t good enough, doubt Jiu’s feelings, fear getting hurt.

So she’d just need to push a little harder. Keep showing how much she liked him, why she liked him.

Then Noeul would eventually give in. His fear and self-doubt were the only things blocking him. He did want things to work out with Jiu. Hansol just needed to make him think, “Jiu is trying this hard for me.”

If Hansol explained all this to Jiu, those two getting together would only be a matter of time.

So giving Jiu that advice was the right thing to do.

Hansol and Noeul could never happen anyway. Letting go cleanly and helping them get together would be the mature thing to do. If they dated, Hansol could let go more easily too.

She knew all that…

But her lips wouldn’t move.

Not at all. They felt glued shut.

Honestly, she didn’t feel like telling her anything.

Why should Hansol tell her? Fine, Hansol and Noeul weren’t going to happen—but that didn’t mean she was obligated to step in and find Noeul a girlfriend. Knowing she had no chance already hurt enough; she wasn’t some self-sacrificing heroine who donates her corneas and organs for the one she loves.

Hansol had no intention of sabotaging them.
But helping them actively? She didn’t have to do that.

She’d just stay out of it. Their relationship was something they should figure out. No one could blame Hansol for doing nothing.

Hansol finally spoke.

“Hey, I’ve never dated either. How would I know anything?”

Jiu deflated.

“That’s true… Still, you’re smarter than me. I thought you’d know something.”

“……”

“But talking about it like this makes me feel better. This is why friends are the best.”

Jiu beamed.

Hansol gave a faint smile, then quickly looked away.

…I don’t need to give her a solution. This is what friends do—listen and empathize. If I interfere, I could ruin everything. No one knows what happens in relationships… If they’re meant to be, they’ll figure it out. Yeah. I don’t need to feel guilty. I didn’t do anything wrong…

“…What are you doing?”

Jiu asked.

Hyeonjeong didn’t look up from her phone.

“Oh, my boyfriend wants to get barbecue tonight.”

Jiu peeked at her screen.

Her chat app was filled with hearts and cute emojis.

Hyeonjeong was smiling like someone high on happiness.

Jiu said,

“Looks like things are going well with your boyfriend.”

“Of course.”

“…Where did you say you met him again?”

“Me? While rock climbing.”

“So people date from that kind of thing, huh.”

Hyeonjeong snorted.

“It’s not that you date because you rock climb. You go to places like that to meet people.”

Jiu blinked.

“…Really? …Who confessed first?”

“I did. Before someone else snatched him up.”

“Really? Wow, you’re brave… But you knew he liked you back before you confessed, right?”

Hyeonjeong finally looked up.

“Yeah. I confessed because I felt he had some interest. You don’t go confessing to someone with zero possibility.”

…She had a point.

Interest…?

Jiu tilted her head.

Did Noeul have any interest in her?

They texted, drank together, hung out—so it wasn’t like he disliked her. But she didn’t know whether that was romantic interest or just friendship.

And Noeul got along with almost everyone. He didn’t really have strong preferences about people.

What if Jiu misinterpreted his friendliness as romantic interest and confessed? Noeul would say, “Ah, I didn’t mean it like that. Sorry for the misunderstanding.”
Then they wouldn’t be able to stay friends. He’d act more carefully around her, keeping distance.

What then? Wouldn’t staying friends be better than that?

Jiu suddenly felt strange and looked beside her—Hyeonjeong wasn’t there.

She turned around. Hyeonjeong had stopped walking and was staring at her with a suspicious expression.

Jiu said,

“…What?”

Hyeonjeong walked toward her.

“What is this? Did you get a crush on someone?”

“Huh? No. I was just asking.”

“Hmm~ no. My intuition says that’s not it.”

Jiu swallowed hard.

How was her intuition this good?

“What are you talking about? I was just wondering… how everyone else seems to date so easily.”

“Why, because even those looking people can date?”

“What?! No, that’s not what I meant! It’s just… confessing must take so much courage. I don’t think I could do it… Everyone else seems to manage fine… it’s kind of amazing.”

“You? Why couldn’t you? Anyone would say yes if you confessed. They’d practically bow and say thank you.”

“What are you saying.”

“I’m serious. Want to bet? Pick any guy you see right now. Confess. He’ll say yes.”

“Why are you trying to ruin some guy’s life.”

“What happened to your confidence? You used to say whoever got confessed to by you should consider it an honor.”

“…Me?”

Jiu blinked.

“Yeah. Guess you got humbler with age… Anyway, even if—just in case—you get rejected, so what? Just confess to someone else.”

“How can you say that? The person I like is that person.”

“Still, you can’t keep liking them forever after being rejected. You’d have to move on.”

“As if that’s easy.”

“Hm~ judging from how you’re talking, there’s definitely someone.”

Hyeonjeong nudged Jiu’s side with her elbow.

Jiu dodged away.

“I said no…”

She let out a small laugh.

Then suddenly froze.

Hyeonjeong asked,

“What’s wrong?”

Jiu blinked.

She saw Noeul in the distance.

He was walking toward them. At this rate, they’d cross paths.

Jiu looked around frantically.

Uh… what do I do? Do I just walk normally? Should I say hi? If I say hi… well, that’s fine but… it’s just…

She started stepping backward.

Hyeonjeong looked at her like she had lost her mind.

She wasn’t mentally prepared. Meeting him suddenly felt… too much.

Jiu muttered to Hyeonjeong,

“Hey, I… I have to go somewhere.”

Without waiting, she spun around and walked quickly.

Hyeonjeong asked where she was going, but Jiu didn’t answer. She just hurried away. She had no idea where she was going; she just knew she couldn’t run into Noeul right now.

As she walked, a thought struck her.

…But wait. Why am I avoiding him?